Howe’s The Hike?

My identical twin daughters and I started “Howe’s The Hike” on YouTube in 2016 to document our backpacking trips together. As the length of our trips grew, so did our content, viewers and our infamous long form videos.

For the past few years, the girls have been busy at University, so I’ve been carrying the pack myself mostly, along with some wonderful trail pals.

In November of 2023, I was inducted into the Royal Canadian Geographical Society College of Fellows for showcasing these remote backcountry trails to the world. As the FIRST YouTube Creator to receive this incredible honour, it has inspired me to take the next few years and try to backpack FULL-TIME, showing you even more remote areas in Canada, the US and hopefully, more of planet earth!

I am also committed to growing the sport. Already underway with my Backpacking 101 Series, I would like to devote some extra time to educate folks on how to do this in a responsible way and in a respectful way to nature and to other trail users. Also, as a Dad who did most of this with his kids, I plan some special content for parents. Doing this with your kids is IMMENSELY rewarding, so I want to share some ideas on how to get them started and keep them engaged and happy as they progress from overnights to longer trips, and graduate to more challenging terrain.

Finally, I’d also like to discuss how this time in nature improves your mental health. The healing properties of being immersed in the natural world are well known, but need to be discussed more often. For those who have struggled over the years with anxiety or depression, research shows that backpacking is immensely therapeutic and I hope my work here helps motivate you to get out there and experience this yourself.

With all of that in mind, I hope you’ll join us along this new trail and consider offering your support!!

Stu